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Simplifying UK visa applications for Chinese business partners
January 12, 2015
As of December 2014, a new visa scheme launched by UKVI aims to maintain the UK”s position as the fourth most popular destination for Chinese investment worldwide. “Select Business Scheme UK” (SBS UK) will greatly simplify the process for inviting Chinese business visitors to the UK and will increase the ease at which Chinese business visitors can come to the UK to do business and invest.
This scheme is available to members of China-Britain Business Council (CBBC) and the British Chamber of Commerce in China (BCCC). It will also be offered to members of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and companies referred by UK Trade & Investment (UKTI).
This new scheme will simplify the visa application process for business visitors from China, by allowing representatives of Chinese businesses to provide just three documents when applying for a visa –
1. The application form
2. An invitation letter from a UK business and
3. A letter of employment from a Chinese employer.
Members of CBBC/BCCC who sign up to and participate in the scheme will be provided with a single point of contact within UKVI who will offer support and information for urgent enquiries. They will also receive news, updates and important information on further amendments to the visa service. Signing up to the service will be free.
Lord Sassoon, chairman of CBBC, explained: “Securing a visa can be a concern for Chinese companies. I wholeheartedly welcome the Select Business Scheme UK, which will streamline the process for those companies, and I very much hope that CBBC”s members will take advantage of the service to strengthen links between Chinese and British companies.”
If you would like to find out more about this new visa scheme then please contact us.
